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Trump Set To Lay Out Plan To Fight ISIS; Usain Bolt Wins Historic 3rd Straight 100M Gold; Teams Hiking Security Measures After U.S. Swimmers Robbed; Historic Floods in Louisiana; Shots Fired During Milwaukee Protests; Boko Haram Releases New Video Of Chibok Girls; Manafort Denies "Off-The-Books" Cash Payments. Aired 10-11a ET

Aired August 15, 2016 - 10:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:00:00] ROBYN CURNOW, CNN ANCHOR: Ahead at the "International Desk". Donald Trump laid out his plan to defeat ISIS. A new video is said to show

the missing Chibok girls. And Usain Bolt runs into Olympic history.

Well, hello, everyone, happy Monday. I'm Robyn Curnow at the CNN center.

Donald Trump has touted his ability to win, win, win. Now, he has specifics, at least when it comes to ISIS. He's speaking in a few hours in

the swing state of Ohio, and his campaign say he'll lay out a plan to defeat terror and rewrite America's mandate across the Middle East. Well,

our Jessica Schneider reports.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE PENCE, (R) VICE PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: He's going to lay out his vision and his strategy for defeating radical Islamic terrorists.

JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Donald Trump turning his ISIS- centric foreign policy ideals .

DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: We have to get ISIS. We will defeat ISIS.

SCHNEIDER: . into a three-pillar policy proposal to defeat them.

JEFF SESSIONS, (R) U.S. SENATOR: He's going to talk about how you target your enemies and work with your friends. You don't overreach and

destabilize countries like the Obama/Clinton Administration has done.

SCHNEIDER: A senior campaign official says Trump will unveil several proposals today. He'll declare an end to nation-building and consider any

country willing to help defeat ISIS an ally, a call that could include Russia, a country he originally wanted to back in the fight.

TRUMP: Russia wants to get rid of ISIS. We want to get rid of ISIS. Maybe let Russia do it, let them get rid of ISIS. What the hell do we

care?

SCHNEIDER: Two, Trump will propose suspending visas from any country with heavy terrorist activity and raise the bar for entry into the U.S. The

official suggesting Trump's camp will formulate an ideological test for entry, including stances on issues like religious freedom, but no specific

mention was made of the Muslim ban he called for just nine months ago.

TRUMP: Donald J. Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States.

SCHNEIDER: And finally, Trump will promise to make a clear statement to the world that the U.S. is fighting a battle not just militarily and

financially but ideologically, a point far from Trump's bombastic rhetoric of the past.

TRUMP: I would bomb the (explicit) out of them. We have to knock the hell out of them.

You have to take out their families. When you get these terrorists, you have to take out their families.

SCHNEIDER: The speech comes after Trump repeatedly used a false claim on the campaign trail.

TRUMP: I call President Obama and Hillary Clinton the founders of ISIS.

SCHNEIDER: And paraded his self-proclaimed expertise on the terrorist group.

TRUMP: I know more about ISIS than the generals do. Believe me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CURNOW: Well, that was Jessica Schneider reporting there. Well, CNN's Chris Moody has been following this campaign closely. He joins us from

Washington.

Hey there, Chris. Great to speak to you. Mr. Trump has often been accused of being very low on detail. How realistic are these plans? I mean, what

strikes you about them?

CHRIS MOODY, CNN POLITICS SENIOR DIGITAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, you're precisely right. Throughout the entire campaign, he has just said that

he's going to do things. He's going to make America great. He's going to take out ISIS. And a lot of people are asking how? How are you going to

do this?

And this speech is a series of speeches on topics on foreign policy, on the economy, where he lays out his specifics. What stands out to me is kind of

refining the edges of these blunt proposals, whereas several months ago he'd say we're not allowing any Muslims. Well, a lot of people said that's

obviously not realistic. And so, here they'll lay out the piece-by-piece plan to heighten the bar for getting a visa into the United States.

Also, what stands out as well as in this report when he talks about working with anyone to defeat ISIS, that opens the door for working with Russia in

a way perhaps the United States has not in the past. And of course, he has had interesting ties with Russia through his people who work for his

campaign, as has been reported as well today, Robyn.

CURNOW: Yeah, indeed. And we're going to talk to our correspondent in Moscow about that just a little bit later on in the show. But in terms of

what we're expecting to hear from Mr. Trump, amidst all the bluster we've heard over his campaign, you talk about a refinement of sorts. What does

this mean?

Because, obviously, as we've reported, 75, I think, Republicans have come out from within the security establishments in the last two weeks and said,

listen, he's dangerous, he's not equipped to deal with this. Do you think he's trying to also directly speak to Republicans here within the party?

MOODY: Well, right now he has to do two things. He has to keep the Republicans together that are running. And that 75 you mentioned is just

one letter. There are other letters with even more Republicans who are either abandoning the candidate, saying he's dangerous, saying they're

going to vote for Hillary Clinton or calling on him to come together and try to get it together when he talks about his policies and not to go off

message and say a lot of the things that he said during the primary.

[10:05:12] But he also needs to reach Democrats. He needs to reach independents. This is the part of the campaign where you have to bring

more people in, not just who were part of the primary. And that's something he has really struggled to do, especially after the conventions.

That was a golden moment for him to make that pivot, and in many ways, he did not. And we're starting to see a lot of defections within the party

toward Hillary Clinton.

CURNOW: Yeah, indeed. Many are asking if there were lost opportunities there.

Well, let's talk about Trump's broader campaign. In many ways, he's running against the media as much as he's running against Hillary Clinton. I mean,

now we're also hearing from the "Wall Street Journal," a conservative newspaper, and in fact, they've given Trump a Labor Day deadline. What's

that all about?

MOODY: Well, they're talking about money from the Republican National Committee to help the campaign, precious resources that go into a

nationwide campaign. And they're saying, look, if he does not shape up by Labor Day, they should put that money into the Senate campaigns in the

house.

Remember, the Republicans are very close to possibly losing the Senate. They have 24 of their own up for reelection, and they only have to lose

four or five in order for the Democrats to tip the scales. So, some Republicans are now saying, look, this Trump campaign is a lost cause,

let's help the people that are actually been fighting for the Republican Party for a long time.

Of course, the Trump campaign is pushing back against that, but these voices are getting louder and louder, and the pressure really is on. One

thing about the Trump campaign a lot of folks might not know is that he really is beefed up by the Republican National Committee. His campaign

does not have the kind of infrastructure the Hillary Clinton has, so he's very reliant on the party. And if he loses that money, he's in real

trouble.

CURNOW: Yeah, it's fascinating, isn't it? And of course, we'll bring that speech to our audience when it airs in the next few hours. Thanks so much.

Chris Moody there.

MOODY: Thank you.

CURNOW: And stay tuned. As we said, later on in the show, we'll have one of the authors of the "New York Times" article that delves into Trump's

campaign manager, Paul Manafort, and his alleged ties to Ukraine and Russia. Stay with us for that one.

(MUSIC PLAYING)

Well, star power in Rio where one of the biggest stars of the Olympics took home the gold in one of the games premier events. Well, of course, Amanda

Davies joins me now from Rio with all the latest news. I mean, Usain Bolt, what a legend.

AMANDA DAVIES, CNN WORLD SPORTS REPORTER: That is the only word you can use to describe him, really, Robyn, isn't it? It wasn't as fast or as

spectacular as we've maybe seen from Usain Bolt in the past in terms of Olympic 100-meter finals, but there was no doubt, to see him claim his

third straight Olympic gold in the blue ribbons event is unbelievably impressive, 9.81 he finished. And you really got a sense of just how

important he is to athletics, his mega star status. Because last night, for the first time, really, at this track and field meeting at these

Olympics, we saw an electric atmosphere inside the stadium.

We've had a few days where it's been criticized for people not really being behind the Olympic spirit. It was on fire last night as Bolt stormed to

victory, beating his old rival adversary, Justin Gatlin. So, it is one down, two to go, really, as far as Usain Bolt is concerned at this Olympic

Games. Of course, he's not only looking for the one victory, he's looking for three, and victories in the 100, 200 and 4x100 relay would see him

complete that incredible triple-triple of gold medals. From what we saw last night, it's very difficult to bet against him, Robyn.

CURNOW: And as you're talking, this amazing shot of him just looking at those guys behind him, and he's just leaving them in his wake.

Extraordinary athlete.

OK, I've got a -- we've got to talk about the South Africans, all my fellow South Africans very excited about the 100-meter gold winner. A young

athlete coached by a pretty formidable great grandmother.

DAVIES: Yeah, and it says a lot about Wayde van Niekerk. He has actually challenged Usain Bolt to a race over 200 meters. He's that much -- has

that much belief in his own ability. He has actually been to Jamaica in the last couple years and trained on and off with Bolt and his coach, Glen

Mills. But the permanent fixture in his life for the last three years has been a 74-year-old great grandmother as his coach.

It's a fantastic story. Whatever they're doing, it is obviously working, because van Niekerk didn't only win gold in the 400 meters, but he set a

new world record in the process. He broke the record that Michael Johnson had set 17 years ago.

[10:10:10] And what makes it all the more impressive is that he didn't do it in a one-off race. He'd obviously had to build-up the heats, the semi-

finals, and then the final for this race, and he did it from lane eight, that outside lane where he can see nobody at all ahead of him. Everybody

is behind him. He was the target man that they were chasing. And still, he managed to produce the victory in that new world best time.

CURNOW: OK, Amanda, thanks so much. Great images there. And as always, some really heart-warming stories about human endeavors. It's wonderful.

Thanks so much to you guys there in Rio.

However, there has been another side to these games. Olympic teams are stepping up security measures after four American swimmers were robbed at

gunpoint. Well, I want to bring in our Nick Paton Walsh with more on the security situation in Rio.

Hi there, Nick. I mean, you've been reporting on this for weeks now, but this incident in particular really concerning.

NICK PATON WALSH, SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it is really, sadly, part of a pattern we're seeing here. You know, you can hear the

music behind me of the pretty secure bubble of Copacabana, where events happen every morning. But we have a huge, sprawling city under an economic

crisis where petty crime, often at gunpoint, is a very consistent issue.

Now, Ryan Lochte was said, by his own accounts, to be leaving a nightclub in the early hours of the morning when he was accosted by four men dressed

as armed police officers who held him at gunpoint and then robbed him. Here's how he had to describe his ordeal to NBC's "Today" program.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RYAN LOCHTE, U.S. SWIMMER ROBBED AT GUNPOINT: They pulled us over. They pulled out their guns. They told the other swimmers to get down on the

ground. They got down on the ground. I refused. I was like, we didn't do anything wrong. So, I'm not getting down on the ground. And this guy

pulled out his gun, he cocked it, put it to my forehead, and say, "Get down," and I was like, I had to put my hands up. I was like, whatever.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALSH: It's pretty startling ordeal, really, to be an award-winning medalist and find yourself with a gun to your forehead being robbed here

just outside a nightclub. Now, Brazilian officials have said, "Well, we've done a good job securing people at the Olympic venues. If they're going to

wander off around Rio, a city of this size with this kind of crime problem, well this might possibly happen to you." Hardly that comforting statement.

And you have to bear in mind, Robyn, the most chilling part of this is these men that robbed them were dressed as police officers and they were

armed. Now, the security we have all over this city is dependent on that sense of trust with the police. If that starts to erode because of high-

profilers didn't like that, well, you could see an awful lot more potential problems here and people, frankly, feeling less safe, Robyn.

CURNOW: We know that the Australian Olympic delegation has new stricter safety rules for their athletes. So, just give us some sense. I mean,

there are number of venues across a very large city, so it's not just keeping athletes safe after they've won their medals and they're

celebrating, but getting them from venue to venue. I mean, this is a complicated security project. And as you say, there are holes in it.

WALSH: Well, so far, outside these instances of petty crime where you have athletes who appear to often be on their own or away from the kind of

established lanes that move them between their accommodation and the venues where they compete, we've seen the sportsmen for the most part, it seems,

safe, because there is a phenomenally large, visible military presence here. I mean, we're woken where we are every morning with the sound of

helicopters, frankly. You know, they're constantly in the air. There's a destroyer out in the bay half the time. It's buried in your face.

And that's designed to be sure that when the athletes stay into these established lanes for them, they're fine. But this is Brazil. You want to

go and see the city itself, so you will have instances like Ryan Lochte, attending a birthday part for another swimmer, find themselves straying

away from those pre-established lanes.

The basic question we're finding now, I think, is as the games begin to get closer towards their end, everyone's getting a lot more relaxed. There

have been reports of some of the security screening at the venues not being as well attended or manned as they could be, or at times completely

unattended. A lot of questions to be asked now and I think more concerns building. Robyn?

CURNOW: OK, keeping an eye on things there in Rio, Nick Paton Walsh. Thank you.

Still ahead here at the "International Desk," Boko Haram has released a new video of many of the missing girls of Chibok, and some of them may have met

with a tragic fate.

Also, tensions boil over after police in the U.S. open fire on a suspect. We'll have details of the violent protests that followed. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:16:52] CURNOW: You're watching CNN, I'm Robyn Curnow. It's 16 minutes past the hour.

Now, we know at least five people are dead, more than 20,000 have needed rescuing, and the floodwaters keep on rising in the U.S. State of

Louisiana. The historic flooding has produced some dramatic rescues, like this heart-stopper that was caught on video. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh my god. Get the dog.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get the dog.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Get the dog.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh my god.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, you help me.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Move to the boat, move to the boat.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CURNOW: Extraordinary images there, lucky woman, lucky dog.

Well, CNN's Boris Sanchez joins me now from Baton Rouge with more. Hi there, Boris, I mean, that is just one out of 20,000 rescues.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is. It is truly an incredible rescue, Robyn. And the most astonishing thing about it is that it was a

group of volunteers that were in the right place at the right time that were able to get that woman out of that car. And we've seen scenes like

that all over the State of Louisiana, boat owners coming out into neighborhoods where they know people need help and going in and trying to

rescue them as best they can.

I want to give you an idea of what we're seeing right now. You can tell behind me there's blue skies, but this floodwater is continuing to rise.

And much like in other places, it's not because of rain. It's actually because the ground is saturated. So much rainfall over time has saturated

the ground, and the floodwaters have to go somewhere.

This neighborhood in particular didn't get that much rain. It's actually a swamp. The Manchac bayou that's behind these homes that is overflowed.

One woman told me that at around midnight early Saturday morning, she didn't think her home was going to flood. She looked outside, and there

was flooding, but it didn't reach her home. Then by 2:00 a.m., 3:00 a.m., all this water started coming in and filled up about a foot of her home.

And now, she's stuck. She's not even able to get inside. She came back to try to recover some pictures. Obviously, it's a very precarious situation

trying to reach a home in that state.

I can tell you from where we're standing right now, just about at this exact spot yesterday at 5:00 p.m. is where a satellite truck was stationed.

And now, as you can see, the water has gone up considerably. It's going to continue going up in this area until it finally recedes and these neighbors

are able to go into their homes and see just how bad this damage was, Robyn.

CURNOW: Yeah. I mean, so many people impacted. Why is this so unprecedented? And more importantly, I mean, what are people doing to try

and salvage what they can from those houses behind you?

SANCHEZ: Right, well, you mentioned just how unprecedented this is. The governor has called this a historic disaster, and it truly is. There's a 1

in 500 chance. They call it a 500-year flood, to get this level of rainfall. It was about - it was more than two feet since last Wednesday.

And the thing was, it wasn't an especially strong surge, but it was just consistent, nonstop rainfall that pounded this area. And at some point,

you know, the wetlands, the rivers and lakes gave. And that's when we saw, you know, neighborhoods like this get inundated.

[10:20:11] In terms of what people are doing, you know, we've actually seen neighbors here help out other neighbors. Letting them stay inside their

homes, even as they're watching the floodwaters creep inch by inch closer to their doors. They've also -- several people have gone out in canoes to

try to get inside their homes and try to get out what they can.

The difficulty here is that there's such a risk. You saw that video earlier where we're talking about the rescue. There's such a risk when you

do that. What officials are asking is that if you do not have to leave your home, if you don't have to evacuate and you don't need to be out on

the street, you just stay inside where it's safe and let the authorities do their work, Robyn.

CURNOW: Yeah, thanks so much. Boris Sanchez there reporting. Appreciate it.

Well, protests over a police shooting have hit another U.S. city. Two nights of violent protests have left at least two people injured in

Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Ana Cabrera has the details.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANA CABRERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Protests and violence erupting again in Milwaukee. Demonstrators firing shots .

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A lot of shots, a lot of shots right now.

CABRERA: . throwing objects .

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Out the road, looks like a gas tank just popped.

CABRERA: . and setting cars on fire. At least one person was shot and rushed to the hospital.

A police officer also hospitalized after a rock smashed the windshield of a squad car.

The weekend of violence began on Saturday with demonstrators torching several businesses, overturning cars and throwing rocks at police to

protest the police shooting death of 23-year-old Sylville Smith.

Smith was shot fleeing a traffic stop when police say he turned toward the officer with a gun in his hand. The officer's body camera capturing the

deadly encounter. Milwaukee's Mayor tried to address the festering anger about whether the shooting was justified.

TOM BARRETT, MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN MAYOR: Without question, he had a gun in his hand. And I want our community to know that.

CABRERA: Governor Scott Walker activating the National Guard to assist police in declaring a state of emergency.

SCOTT WALKER, WISCONSIN GOVERNOR: That I was worried about whether or not things would escalate.

CABRERA: Smith's family and friends holding a vigil marked by prayers .

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKERS: Thy kingdom come, thy will be done.

CABRERA: . with his sister calling for peace.

KIMBERLY NEAL, SYLVILLE SMITH'S SISTER: Don't bring the violence here and the ignorance here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CURNOW: That was Ana Cabrera reporting there.

Well, police in New York are reportedly questioning a possible suspect in connection with a brutal double murder in broad daylight there.

Security footage shows two men walking under an umbrella on Saturday in Queens. The men were coming from a mosque when gunmen approached. The

victims were an imam and his assistant. Police say they have no evidence that they were targeted because of their faith.

And there's been another troubling turn in the Boko Haram kidnapping of more than 200 girls in Nigeria two years ago. Many of the girls are seen

on a video released on social media over the weekend by the Islamic extremist group. The end of the video shows several dead girls. Boko

Haram says they were killed in a Nigerian air strike.

Well, earlier, I spoke with CNN's Nima Elbagir about this new development. We most warn you that some of the images are graphic. They are disturbing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NIMA ELBAGIR, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It shows dead girls, girls that look like they would match the Chibok girls in age, being turned

over by Boko Haram soldiers so that they can be -- so that their faces can clearly be shown to the cameras.

Now, Boko Haram purports that this is in the aftermath of a government aerial strike, which the Nigerian government does deny. But it is Boko

Haram's justification for why they say all of the Chibok girls that were kidnapped are not still alive.

The entirety of this video is incredibly emotive. It is intentionally emotive. You can see that this is really an escalation in Boko Haram's

P.R. war with the Nigerian government because this is the first time that we're hearing from them directly what it is they want and they say that

they want their jailed comrades. They want Boko Haram soldiers currently held in Nigerian government prisons to be released in exchange for these

girls. Otherwise, they say these girls will never be freed and they will never, and this is said in the most sinister way possible, they will never

be freed or found alive.

It really is an extraordinarily difficult video to watch. So you can only imagine how heartbreaking this has been for the parents.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CURNOW: Nima Elbagir speaking to me a little bit earlier.

Now, the Nigerian army said it wants to question three people who may know where the missing Chibok girls can be found.

And a South African woman convicted of kidnapping an infant and raising her as her own has been sentenced and she's facing significant time in prison.

Well, our David McKenzie joins me now from Johannesburg with the final chapter in a case that dates back almost two decades. Hi there, Dave.

[10:25:03] DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Oh, hi, Robyn. Yes, this case has shocked South Africans, and it all started back in 1997 when a

three-day-old baby was kidnapped from her sleeping mother in hospital and then raised by the woman who kidnapped her as her own.

Now, the child became known as Zephany Nurse. That's not the name that she grew up with, for privacy reasons, but they only found out that this girl

had been kidnapped or found out where the girl was when she went to a high school in Cape Town and her sister recognized her, and they did DNA tests.

Now, that woman in question has, throughout this process, denied that she kidnapped the girl and said she thought it was a legitimate adoption. The

judge certainly didn't buy that, gave her 10 years of direct imprisonment for fraud, kidnapping and contravention of the child act.

It's certainly has been a case that has been splashed all across, as you would expect, the South African media. And the question is now what the

prospects are for this young woman who really was raised as someone else. Robyn?

CURNOW: Indeed. So, the question is what next? And, particularly, was a very emotive, heartbreaking fact that Zephany Nurse still considers the

woman who kidnapped her as her mother and doesn't seem to have a relationship with her birth parents.

MCKENZIE: Well, you can understand that in a way. She grew up the whole time thinking that her parents were her parents, not the people or, at

least, the woman who stole her from her mother's -- her biological mother's arms.

Now, Zephany Nurse decided to move back in with the father she knew all of her life, rather than to move in with her biological parents. The advocate

in the case said that it was -- that that woman who kidnapped her caused irreparable emotional, physical and psychological trauma to the families

involved, and particularly to the young woman in question.

Where she goes from now is unclear, but they have managed to keep her privacy intact throughout these entire proceedings. And though she did

testify during the court proceedings and the sentencing hearing, all of that testimony remains sealed. Robyn?

CURNOW: Yeah. I mean, in many ways that is such a benefit, a bonus that she's been able to, perhaps, and will be able to, perhaps, move on without

the glare of the spotlight on her.

Thanks so much, David McKenzie there in South Africa.

Still ahead, a new report draws a line between Ukraine's pro-Russian president and Donald Trump's campaign chief. Will this hurt his chance

within the U.S. presidential election? We'll take a look. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:30:19] CURNOW: Hi, there. Welcome to the "International Desk." Thanks for joining me, I'm Robyn Curnow. Here's a check on the headlines.

A history-making night for Usain Bolt at the Rio Olympics. The Jamaican sprinter won his third straight Olympic gold medal in the 100-meter dash.

We'll have much more on Bolt's victory and what's ahead for him in Rio later on "World Sport."

And Boko Haram have released new video, said to show some of the missing girls of Chibok. At least one of the girls has been identified by her

father. A masked militant declares that 40 of the girls were reportedly married off. He said others have been killed in air strikes. Some of the

video depicts bodies of the dead.

US presidential candidate Donald Trump is set to unveil his plan to combat ISIS. Trump will reportedly make clear the US is fighting ISIS and not

nation-building in the Middle East. The plan would also deny visas to anyone coming from countries that would cause "heavy terrorist activities"

who can't be adequately screened.

Meanwhile, Donald Trump's campaign chairman is defending himself instead of the candidate. "The New York Times" report Paul Manafort received more

than $12 million in undisclosed cash payments while working for pro- Russian, ex-Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych. The newspaper says it got the information from a secret, handwritten ledger outlining the

payments.

Well, in a statement, Manafort denied any wrong doing, writing he has never received any off-the-books cash payments or worked for the Ukrainian or

Russian Governments.

Well, Trump campaign have tried to erase the perception that it has ties to Russia or in Vladimir Putin in a report like

this. There's nothing to help Trump.

Well, for more now, let's just bring in our Matthew Chance, joining us from Moscow.

Hi there, Matthew. We're hoping to get Andrew Kramer, who wrote "The New York Times" report, in just a moment. But while we sort out the comms on

that, I just want to get your perspective from about this criticism that, you know, this really fuels the sense or the perception that Mr. Trump and

his campaign are cozy with the Kremlin.

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, I mean, that's been something that the Trump campaign has had to battle or has even

encouraged, in fact, throughout the course of its campaign. Particularly, the remarks by Mr. Trump himself praising, essentially, Vladimir Putin, the

Russian President, as being a better leader, for instance, than President Obama back in the United States.

Also, making this sort of foreign policy gestures which appear to be very pro-Russian in their stance, for instance, suggesting that Russia, you

know, would the -- its claim to Crimea, which annexed from Ukraine in 2014, is in some way legitimate. So, I'm obviously paraphrasing Donald Trump

there.

But you're right, I mean, one of Donald Trump's other issues with Russia has been he's been surrounded by people who do, indeed, have close personal

and business connections with the country. Paul Manafort, his campaign chairman, is one such individual because -- and he was involved very

closely with advising the political party of Viktor Yanukovych, who is the former president of Ukraine. He was ousted in that revolution in 2014. He

fled to Russia. He was seen as being very pro-Russian.

And of course, now, this latest scandal has emerged in which a ledger has appeared in Ukraine with Paul Manafort's name on it suggesting that he

received $12.7 million from that political party. Although, the investigators are quick to point out it's not evidence in itself and the

money was actually transferred. But what it does do is reinforce those nefarious links, potentially, between the Trump campaign and the Russians,

or rather, individuals who are supported by the Russians.

CURNOW: Indeed, Matthew, stand by. We've managed to establish our comms with one of the writers of that "New York Times" article. Andrew Kramer

joins us via Skype from Moscow as well.

And Andrew, hi there. What are the details that you're going to have from these allegedly secret records and murky payments? Tell us about it.

ANDREW KRAMER, MOSCOW "THE NEW YORK TIMES" CORRESPONDENT: Sure. Thank you very much for having me on. The concept of our reporting was to travel to

Kiev and examine some of the documents that came to light after the revolution of 2014. There were three or four significant document caches

that I was interested in. The one that turned out to be the most compelling in terms of shedding light on Mr. Manafort's work was the so-

called black ledger of the Party of Regions.

CURNOW: And what does that indicate?

KRAMER: Well, this is a book. It contains about 800 names covering five years and describes disbursements of the party to members of the party for

travel expenses, for example, also to election officials who received this money potentially as bribes to rig an election.

[10:35:07] Also in this list of recipients was Paul Manafort, according to Ukrainian investigators. These are handwritten notes, and they indicate

that he received, on 22 occasions, a total of $12.7 million.

CURNOW: OK. And we must reiterate Mr. Manafort has issued a statement saying that he never received any off-the-books cash payments or worked for

the Ukrainian or Russian governments. What do Ukrainian anti-corruption officials do next? Is there going to be a trial? What do they do with

this alleged information?

KRAMER: Well, it's a major domestic political issue in Ukraine, and not because of Paul Manafort, because of all the other names on this list. So,

what they've done is they've tried to contact people whose names are on the list and asked them about the payments.

Also, some people apparently received these payments through intermediaries. And in this case, they've had a blanket offer of immunity

to intermediaries willing to step forward and testify about who was the ultimate recipient of this money.

Now, Mr. Manafort's statement says that money that he received was used to pay all of his expenses in Ukraine. It wasn't used for his personal salary

and this included polling and office staff and so on. It was not a denial that this sum of money had been received or that he'd been paid by the

Party of Regions, but rather, that it was paid in an off-the-books manner.

This ledger is the evidence of off-the-books accounting by the Party of Regions over a five-year period from 2007 to 2012. So, Ukrainian

investigators say they're continuing to look into who received this money.

CURNOW: So, Mr. Manafort was in the business of international consulting. What exactly was he doing for Mr. Yanukovych, and also, previously, for

Ferdinand Marcos?

KRAMER: He was officially an election adviser. He would conduct polling and advise Mr. Yanukovych and the Party of Regions on electoral strategy.

And Ukraine, part of this advice included segmenting the electorate, encouraging the Party of Regions to exploit wedge issues in Ukraine, such

as the Russian language, and to win a large percentage of vote in Eastern Ukraine. This was some of the key advice that Mr. Manafort offered.

This would be perfectly legal and for US citizen to do this, both in Ukraine and in the United States. If an adviser is lobbying the U.S.

government and receiving payment from either a foreign government or an entity under the control of a foreign government, they are required to

register with the Justice Department in the United States.

Mr. Manafort stayed on the employee of the Party of Regions after 2010, in fact, throughout this period, even when there were no elections. And

Ukrainian officials have said that they understood, you know, that his work in part to be as a liaison with U.S. officials and as an advocate of their

interest in Washington. And this is slightly separate issue about what he was employed -- what he received this money to do as opposed to the manner

in which he was paid.

CURNOW: A lot of questions. Andrew Kramer from "New York Times," thanks so much.

KRAMER: Thank you.

CURNOW: Appreciate you sharing your investigation with us. Let me go back to Matthew Chance, also in Moscow.

Matthew, we're also going to be hearing from Donald Trump in the next few hours. And, as you were saying, as we heard Andrew saying there, I mean,

Mr. Trump's campaign, in many ways, is perhaps suggesting or looking to reset the U.S. relationship with Russia. What does that mean? I mean,

he's at a pretty low point now. What would a potential impact of a Trump presidency have on warming diplomatic ties?

CHANCE: Well, it's difficult to say, isn't it? Because I'm not sure that the policies that the Trump campaign has been talking about or really

spelled out in any kind of real detail. And certainly, from a Russian perspective, there's a sense in which Donald Trump speaks favorably,

positively about Russia, and that's something that is welcomed in political circles here as well as amongst the general population.

And he's often contrasted with Hillary Clinton, his Democratic Party rival, of course, on the opposite side of the political field in the United

States. Because she's seen here as very tough when it comes to Russian -- Russia, and a hawk when it comes to U.S. policy towards Russian interests.

And so, you know, in that sense, Donald Trump is seen as the favored character, the favored candidate by the Kremlin and by many Russians who

are following this election very closely, indeed, of course.

[10:40:02] At the same time, there's been lots of expressions, at least privately expressed, about how reliable Donald Trump would be. I mean,

he's seen as being unpredictable, he's seen as being kind a quite random here and, you know, there's a lot of concern that if he were to ascend to

the presidency in the United States, that could have very unpredictable consequences for Russia as well. And so, I think it's fair to say the

opinion is mixed on whether it would be a good or a bad thing if there's a Trump presidency.

CURNOW: Yeah, thanks so much, from Moscow, Matthew Chance. As always, thanks so much.

I'm Robyn Curnow, you're watching CNN. Much more news after the break. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CURNOW: Finally today, a Chinese diver has got more than a silver medal after the women's 3-meter springboard final on Sunday. She also walked

away with an engagement ring.

There we go, her longtime boyfriend. He's also a medal-winning diver. Popped the question after the ceremony. And as you can see from his face,

she said yes.

Now, this is the second athlete proposal of the Olympic Games. Last week, a Brazilian rugby player accepted her girlfriend's proposal on the rugby

field. Congrats to them all.

Well, that does it for us here at the "INTERNATIONAL DESK." Thanks for joining me. I'm Robyn Curnow. I'll be back in just over an hour with more

news.

In the meantime, I'm going to hand you over to our team in Rio.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WORLD SPORT)

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